CaixaBank named as leader in green financing in Europe

According to the Bloomberg green financing ranking

• The bank closed out 2022 in the top position in Europe in the Bloomberg green financing ranking, and third worldwide.
• In addition, CaixaBank rose to a podium position in Refinitiv's European ranking of sustainable financing.
• CaixaBank, through its CIB&IB Department, continues to innovate in Sustainable Financing and ESG Guidance.

CaixaBank further consolidates its leadership in green and sustainable financing. The bank rose to the top of green financing in Europe in 2022, according to the Bloomberg League Table Green Use of Proceeds Top Tier Lender. According to this ranking, CaixaBank's CIB&IB Department financed 3.271 billion dollars in 16 operations, a volume that doubles the financing figure of its next closest competitor in the ranking. In addition, according to Bloomberg, CaixaBank rose to third place in the global green financing ranking, behind Sumitomo and Mitsubishi.

In this financing classification, CaixaBank has stood out for its constant innovation as it develops new green financing formulas. Notable in this regard is the  pioneering financing product CESCE Green Hedge issued to Iberdrola, and the first operations with transactional products like the Trade Financing Line, or Green Guarantees with customers like Opdenergy, Grenergy or FRV (Fotowatio). Also of note is the financing of Aqualia, which involved the highest volume in Spain last year. In all these operations, CaixaBank advised its customers on their structure, acting as an agent of sustainability.

CaixaBank ranked third  in Refinitiv's European ranking of sustainable financing

Moreover, CaixaBank consolidated its leadership in sustainable financing in Europe, closing out 2022 in third place in sustainable financing in Europe, according to the Refinitiv EMEA Top Tier Green & ESG-Linked Loans ranking. The bank's constant improvement in this ranking is notable, having risen three positions with respect to the previous year and being the top Spanish company in this list.

Refinitiv considered US$12.716 billion in a total of 99 operations when preparing its European ranking of sustainable financing, which includes both green and ESG-Linked financing. This ranking only takes into account those financing operations where CaixaBank was involved as a top-tier lender.

Notable amongst the operations made by the CIB&IB Department of CaixaBank, and considered for the Refinitiv ranking, is the inaugural sustainable financing in the domestic maritime sector with Balearia; and in Spain's textile sector with Mango and Tendam; or the inaugural financing of Hispasat. Other highlights include international operations with companies like Sonae Arauco, ASTM and A2A. In all these transactions, CaixaBank was involved as the Sustainability Coordinator and Agent.

Also in 2022, the bank launched its ESG Guidance service to help corporate and institutional customers analyse and set up their sustainability strategy and positioning. This service was designed using an internal methodology and is based on the Guide of the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership and UNEP-Fi. Currently, CaixaBank CIB&IB is advising more than 20 companies and groups with this service.

Sustainability, a priority of the new Strategic Plan

As part of its new 2022-2024 Strategic Plan, CaixaBank has set as a strategic priority to be a sustainability leader in Europe, to which end it has mobilised €64 billion in sustainable financing to boost the transition to sustainability in companies and society alike. CaixaBank has other commitments that address the ambitions of its 2022-2024 Sustainable Banking Plan. In the environmental area, the bank is committed to further decarbonise its portfolio to reach zero emissions by 2050. In the social sphere, it will allocate over €3.5 billion in new microloans and impact more than 413,000 beneficiaries through its MicroBank social bank. And in the area of governance, the goal is to have 42% of managerial positions filled by women.